Abstract
Coloninae is a tiny and distinctive subfamily of the highly diverse family Leiodidae (round fungus and small carrion beetles). Although only one leiodid fossil is known from the Mesozoic, its taxonomic position and classification are doubtful. We describe the first definitive Coloninae fossil, Colon burmiticum Yamamoto sp. nov., from Upper Cretaceous amber of Myanmar. Our finding sheds light on the origin and early evolutionary history of this peculiar genus and its subfamily.
Kurzfassung
Die Coloninae sind eine kleine und unverwechselbare Unterfamilie der vielfältigen Gruppe der Familie Leiodidae, auch runde Pilzkäfer genannt. Obwohl es nur einen einzigen fossilen Vertreter der Leiodidae aus dem Mesozoikum gibt, ist seine taxonomische Position und Klassifizierung zweifelhaft. Hier beschreiben wir das erste eindeutige Fossil der Coloninae, Colon burmiticum Yamamoto sp. nov., aus dem Oberkreide-Bernstein aus Myanmar (Burma). Unsere Entdeckung beleuchtet den Ursprung und die frühe Evolutionsgeschichte dieser eigenartigen Gattung und sogar der Unterfamilie.
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Acknowledgements
The first author would like to thank Toshiya Hirowatari (Kyushu University, Fukuoka) for commenting on the early version of the manuscript. SY also thanks Crystal Maier (FMNH) for the specimen number. Three reviewers, including Stewart B. Peck and Mike Reich (Editor-in-Chief), improved the manuscript. This study was partially supported by the Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (14J02669) to SY from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan. This work is a contribution from the Entomological Laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan (Ser. 7, No. 60).
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Handling editor: Mike Reich.
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Yamamoto, S., Takahashi, Y. First discovery of fossil Coloninae in Cretaceous Burmese amber (Coleoptera, Staphylinoidea, Leiodidae) . PalZ 92, 195–201 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12542-017-0386-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12542-017-0386-0